Two-Eyed Seeing: A Reflection on Western Science & Indigenous Knowledge on Earth Day

written by 2026 CNAY Fellow Jeamilett Martinez (Mazahua & Mixtec)

Now that the snow has fully melted, and in preparation for the April showers, it was time to help clear the fallen leaves that have piled up in our Native Garden. Our garden is fairly new, but it is a starting point for many things on campus: indigenizing space and fulfilling Land Acknowledgement commitments.

Just as our Native Garden is in its early stages, the CNAIS (Critical Native & Indigenous Studies) concentration at Brown University is beginning, graduating its first class in 2024. As a CNAIS and environmental science concentrator, I have had the privilege of learning and practicing environmental work through a lens of both Western science and Indigenous knowledge. Two-Eyed Seeing is a framework I draw on most, introduced by Mi’kmaq Elder Albert Marshall, who approaches research from a dual perspective. Two-Eyed Seeing combines the evidence and quantitative analysis Western science prioritizes with Indigenous knowledge that provides a holistic, relational and place-based perspective.  

In the face of climate change, there has been increasing pressure to find solutions that reduce or slow the rate of environmental shifts and destruction. Without including Indigenous ways of thinking, I believe we will end up in the same extractive cycle that led us to this disaster in the first place. Indigenous ways of thinking are deeply relational and spiritual, with a sense of responsibility to all living beings. Although Western science is useful for quantifying what we know, I view it as more about telling than about sharing. Western science is a human-centered, linear process that prioritizes results over anything else. Thus, it’s no surprise that the majority of people and institutions validate and embody human-earth relations in a detached manner.

I, too, can get sucked into this echo chamber at school of doing as much as possible, not making any time to slow down and spend time with nature, the relative I’m to protect and restore relationships with. For this reason, I have been so appreciative of and want to highlight our Native garden as a space for active relatives to the Narragansett land I’m on. My friend and N@B (Natives@Brown) member, Benjamin Cordova, has done much work keeping the garden alive, and I’m excited to help him grow it. While cleaning up the leaf accumulation, we were able to see how nutrient-rich the soil was, as it was home to many worms. Sweetgrass has also grown abundantly, surviving the coldest winter storm in Providence’s history. Seeing sweetgrass proliferate serves as a reminder that nature will always work to restore itself, and we just need to be good relatives and stop making it harder for our more-than-human relatives to thrive. Just as gardening can be dirty and messy, environmental work can be, too. In some ways, it should be messy, as not everything is predictable. Two-Eyed Seeing is imperative to this work – whether as a science researcher or an environmental lawyer, as I aspire to be. Only by exemplifying our love for the Earth can we work toward a more just future.